Opposition leaders questioned whether the police had entered the shrine without following Sikh religious customs, which require visitors to remove their footwear and cover their heads before entering the prayer area.
A day of barricades and detentions in Delhi took another turn on Saturday when protesters sought shelter at Gurdwara Bangla Sahib. Soon, a video showing police personnel walking through a passage at the Sikh shrine with their shoes on went viral on social media, triggering allegations of disrespect and a political war of words.
The clip shows several uniformed officers moving through a passage on the gurdwara premises, some wearing shoes. Opposition leaders questioned whether the police had entered the shrine without following Sikh religious customs, which require visitors to remove their footwear and cover their heads before entering the prayer area.
The footage surfaced as police moved to stop a planned protest at Jantar Mantar against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, with demonstrators being detained at several locations across the capital.
“Did the police enter Gurudwara Bangla Sahib today? Is the BJP Govt out of its senses? They are wearing shoes and are not covering their heads,” Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Saurabh Bharadwaj wrote on X.
Delhi Police, however, had a different explanation.
What Delhi Police Said
The Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi, said the video showed personnel walking through a common passage used by devotees to reach the point where shoes are removed before entering the gurdwara.
The same procedure applies to every visitor, police said, releasing another video to show the route.
The footage was circulated “deliberately with malicious intent”, police alleged, saying it could hurt religious sentiments and disturb communal harmony. Legal action was being initiated, the statement added.
The clarification addressed why personnel were wearing shoes in the passage, but did not specifically respond to the allegation that some officers had not covered their heads.
The video also drew criticism from other Opposition leaders.
AAP’s Punjab leader Aman Arora alleged that police had entered the gurdwara “WITH THEIR SHOES ON AND BATONS IN HAND”. The young protesters, he claimed, had sought refuge while respecting the shrine’s religious code of conduct.
Punjab Congress leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira said the Nishan Sahib, the Sikh flag flown at gurdwaras, was a symbol of refuge. He went on to describe it as an attempt by the BJP government to stop protesters from seeking shelter.
“Dirty Politics”: Gurdwara Committee Chief
But Harmeet Singh Kalka, president of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC), raised a different question: what were protesters doing inside the gurdwara?
Kalka cited a separate video which, he alleged, showed protestors carrying placards and raising slogans on the premises. Some had also tried to force their way into the hall, he claimed.
“Aam Aadmi Party leaders have started indulging in dirty politics over the protest held in Delhi today. They are now trying to malign gurdwaras,” Kalka said.
He said gurdwaras were open to everyone, irrespective of their background, but their premises could not become a protest venue.
“A gurdwara is open to people from every section of society, and everyone is served equally. But protesters entered the gurdwara premises and tried to force their way into the hall. This is completely unacceptable,” he said.
Kalka also questioned the criticism over the police entering the premises to remove protesters.
“If protesters enter a gurdwara and the police have to come to remove them, what other option is there?” he asked.
People seeking food or shelter would always be welcome, he added, but political demonstrations inside the gurdwara would not be permitted.
Sirsa Targets Kejriwal, Praises Police
Delhi Minister and BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa joined the exchange, accusing people associated with Arvind Kejriwal of raising political slogans at the shrine.
In a post on X, he said the gurdwara was a sacred place for prayers, service and Sikh religious traditions, not a political battleground. He demanded an unconditional apology from the former Delhi Chief Minister and other leaders supporting the alleged conduct.
